Recipes, reviews and recreation with the Madhouse Family - one parent, three kids, two dogs, all bilingual !

Wednesday, 8 June 2011

Pabobo Barbapapa Carousel Lamp review

Today I have a challenge for you. Try saying "Pabobo Barbapapa lamp" ten times really fast ! It's definitely a tongue twister ! But I rose to the challenge and have been trying out the one that the lovely people at Pabobo sent me to review.

I remember Barbapapa from when I was a kid in the seventies - even though back then, I had no idea that Barbapapa (or barbe à papa) means candy floss or can be literally translated as Dad's beard ! - so I love the fact that it's back on TV and that the girls love following their adventures on screen and in books.

The lamp shows all the characters in the Barbapapa family when you turn it on and they spin round slowly, making pretty light patterns on the ceiling which are strangely soothing and mesmerising and great for sending you to sleep, let alone your little ones ! I initially thought it would make coloured Barbapapa patterns on the ceiling (like a Winnie the Pooh lightshow we used to have) but it doesn't, it's plain white teardrop shapes, but they're still appealing to tired little sleepyheads.

Once plugged in, the unit only takes a few seconds to "warm up" and light up with rotating Barbapapa images. I'm trying to avoid getting Pierre into the same bad habit his elder sisters acquired of sleeping all night with a night light turned on, so I leave it on for a few minutes before bed then turn it off. If Pierre wakes up early while I'm still getting dressed and ready for work in the morning, I also turn it on while I finish off so that he waits patiently watching the pretty pictures rather than screaming his head off. Inevitably, one morning, I dashed out of the house juggling kids, books and keys and forgot to turn it off. When I got back home at the end of the day, I was impressed to see that it was still totally stone cold to the touch. It's also an extremely sturdy, stable unit which can be placed on a shelf or secured on the wall with a bracket.

I was impressed by the quality of the product - it's well built, seems totally safe (I was really impressed when it got left on all day and stayed cold) and is completely silent, but the best part is, Pierre is absolutely fascinated by it and seems instantly soothed. And that, as any parent will tell you, is absolutely priceless !